Refrigerated display counter



May 19, 1931. .J. BLAZEK REFRIGERATED DISPLAY COUNTER Filed May 25, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l May 19, 1931. J. BLAZEK 1,805,563

REFRIGERATED DISPLAY COUNTER Filed May 25, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig. 3.

znz/enfaz" Joseph 156 a 26A A uacss ,5 $941M Patented May 19, 1931 meme iamziiii, or ome -ea, armors nnrniennamnn DISPLAY caesium Application filed my 25,

This invention relates to an improvement in refrigerated display counters designed to visibly store perishable articles, such as vegetables and cut meats on display in markets, delicatessen stores and the like, and-; relates to that type of display counters which preferably employ brine coils located below the display compartment for thepurposeof cooling the same. x

In counters of this type,'it frequentlyhappens that particles of meat or other articles on display, or. of dirt or refuse, falldown through the. slatted bottom of the display space onto and through the coils below, where they lodge, and, the coils being diflicult of access, these refuse particles tend to decay and cause unpleasant odors, thereby rendering the counter unsanitary;

The object of the present invention is to provide an arrangement whereby suchrefuse particles may be readily removed from between the. coils or from. the space below, and

whichperniits access to be had to the coils .fiov

for the purpose of cleaning the same from time to time as occasion mayrequire.

Further, objects of the invention will'appear from the detailed description thereof, in conjunction .with the accompanying drawings, wherein 1 Figure l is a cross sectional view ofqa display counter embodying the present invention; 7

Fig. 2 isa longitudinal sectional elevation on line 22-.of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows p Fig.8 is a sectional detail showingone of the removable, drawer'pans located below the coils; and I Fig. 4 is a cross sectional elevation showing a modifiedarrangement. ,7

In the embodiment o f-the inventionof Figs. 1, 2 and 5.3, a display counter isshown, which comprises a lower section A and an upper sectioniB, the latter of which constitutes th display portion of the counter. 1

The display section comprises single or double glass front walls, 10, single; ordou'ble or triple glass top walls 11, and slidingrear doors 12, suitab'lylarran'ged to "a-iford access to the: interior of the display compartment.

storage purposes.

of, insulation.

1928. Serial 1%. 280,478.

The front walls 10 stand in oblique backwardlyusloping relation to the front wall of the lower section, and the sliding doors. 12 standin oblique forwardly sloping relation, whichgives to the upper portion of the counter the cross sectional configuration of a frustrum, which is the usual construction in Icounters of this character. 7 1

Thelower edges of thefront walls 10 are socketed in a lower front rail 13, and the upper edges arelikewise socketed in an'upper front rail 14, whichalso supports the front edges of the glass top walls 11, the rear edges of the top walls being socketed in a rear upper rail 15, which affords a mounting for the l upper edges of the sliding doors, the lower edges of which are mounted upon a lower rear rail 16. g

Behind and below the sliding doors a rear topwall 17 isprovided which fits upon the, upper edgeof the rear wall 18, which completes the outer structure of the counter. The lower portion of the counter is without a rear wall, being open from the rear for 'As iscustomary in counters of thischaracter, the front and rear walls are insulated by layers of suitablepaclnng or filler 20. The above descriptionapplies equally to the modified counter of Fig. 4;

T e upper display portion of the countg ofFig's. 1, 2 and 8 is divided from the lower portionthereof by an upper forwardly sloping partition wall 21 and a spaced lower partition wall- 22,- between' which walls is. located a suitable packing-23 for purposes The display compartment is provided with a removable slatted or perforatedfloor partition or shelving .24 having perforations or slots indicated at 240, and-being situatedim- ,mediatelyabovej the brine coils 25, the; coil sections being separated from one another sufficiently to permit cleaning out ofthe coils as occasion may require. c The slatted or perforated flooror shelvingy24-is supported at its forwarde'dge on thellower front rail 13, and at its rear edge on a ledge or shoulder-26 formed along the lower edge of a longitudinally extendingparma fall down through th'ecoils, one or more sli ing drawer pans 30 are provided, and each of these drawer pans is slidably supported upon the upper surfaceof the sloping partitionwall 20. The drawer pans, collecttively, extend from end to end of the counter,

and constitute in conjunction a flooring immediately below the cooling coils, the sections of which flooring are individually removable as drawers for the purpose of removingany accumulation of scraps which may have fallen down'between the coils.

Each of the drawer pans 30 is provided with a rim or flange aroundits margin, and near its forward edge each drawer pan is provided with a drain port 32 which registers with a drain trough 33 extending along the inner face of the lower front rail 20 from end to end of the counter, and constitutes a common drain trough for all of the drawer sections. A pipe 34 leads from the trough for discharging any accumulation of moisture.

Each drawer pan section at its rear edge is secured to an insulated closing strip 35 provided'witha rear facing panel 36: Each closing strip tits into'a rectangular opening 37 in the rear wall, and the edges of the panel 36 are extended to abut against the margins around said opening, so that, when the drawer pan is shoved forward as in Fig. 1, the closing strip will fit snugly into the opening and seal the opening, and thereby maintain the installation at this point.

It is ordinarily the practice to make display counters of the present type of such length that a single drawer pan would be inconvenient to manipulate, and for this reason, as shown, a group of such drawer pans is provided. Between each drawer pan is located a foreand aft partitionrail 38 which divides the structure into drawer compartments and enables the drawer sections to be individually removed and restored as occasion may require.

In order to shed any moisture or scraps which may fall upon the partition rails, each of the rails is roofed over by a metallic arch strip 39, the edges 40 of which extend over the aide margins of the adjoining drawer pans and serve to direct scraps or falling particles into the drawer pans, and in like manner the outer rims of the drawer pans are protected bystrips 41 similarly positioned. In the modification shown in Fig. 4, in place of the drawer pans heretofore described,

a hinged pan 42 is provided which is secured at its forward lower edge by means of a hinge 43 to the adjacent front wall of the counter. The free rear edge of the hinged pan, when elevated, rests against the rear wall 44 and is held in elevated position by suitable means, such as a hook and eye 45, and when elevated the hingedpan subserves the same function as that subserved by the drawer pan or pans previously described.

When lowered for cleaning, the hinged pan swings down into the position indicated in dotted lines, in which position it is readily accessible from the rear, the lower portion of the counter being open at the point 46 to permit accessto the storage space on the interior. Where/several swinging drawer pans are employed, the adjacent margins of the drawers are protected by arch strips 39" similar in all res ects to the arch strips 39 previousmeats and vegetables, will be placed on dis- Y 1y descri ed; and in other respects the arplay in pans or trays supported upon the slatted floor 24 of the display space. Any scraps or refuse which may fall through the slatted floor and through the spaces between the coils will be caught within the drawer pan or pans below, and from time to time the pans, which are referably of enameled metal, can be remove or swung down, as the case m'a be, and cleaned without difiiculty.

The s atted floor 24 is preferably removable, which affords, ready access to the coils beneath, and the coils can be easily cleaned or scrubbed, and any accumulation of scraps or refuse forced down into the pans below, which permits the counter to be maintained at all times in a clean and sanitary condition, which is, of course, hi hly important in the safe and attractivefisplay of food products.

Although the scribed with particular detail, it is obvious that the structure of the counter may be changedor modified in various ways without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. In a display counter, the combination of a display compartment provided with an apertured floor, cooling coils located below the apertured floor, the coil sections being in spaced relation to one another, and a removable drawer pan located below the cooling coils and positioned to catch and retain scraps of material falling between the coils, said drawer pan being removable through an opening at the rear of the counter.

2. In a display counter, the combination of a display compartment having a removable apertured floor, a plurality of exposed coil sections lying in a substantially horizontal plane in spaced relation to one another beinvention has been delow the floor, and a plurality of drawer-like pans located below the plane of the coils and V positioned to catch and hold scraps of material falling between the coil sections, the drawer-like pans being individually removable each through an opening in the wall of the counter.

3. In a display counter, the combination of a'display compartment having a removable apertured floor, a plurality of coil sections in spaced relation to one another below the floor,

and a plurality of drawer-like pans located below the coils and positioned to catch and hold scraps of material falling between the coils, the drawer-like pans being individually removable each through an opening in the rear Wall of the counter, and each of the drawer-like pans having on its rear edge a closing strip adapted to fit into and seal the opening when the drawer is closed.

4. In a display counter, the combination of a display compartment having a removable apertured floor, a plurality of coil sections in spaced relation to one another below the floor, and a plurality of drawer-like pans located below the coils and positioned to catch and hold scraps of material falling between the coils, the drawer-like pans being individually removable each through an opening in the rear wallof the counter, and

each of the drawer-like pans having on its rear edge a closing strip adapted to fit into and seal the opening when the drawer is closed, the drawers being arranged to occupy a sloping position and each of the drawers at" its lowermost edge being provided with a drain port, and a drain trough located below and common to all of said drain ports.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 23rd day of May, 1928.

JOSEPH BLAZEK. 

